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Urban container gardening may help solve urban-nutrition woes
Bong D. Fabe / Correspondent
(Part three of five)
CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY —Rapid urbanization and population growth in the Philippines, where an estimated 30 percent of the population is living below the national poverty line without access to basic necessities such as adequate sanitation and potable water, has led to serious negative consequences on both human and environmental health.
But community-based solutions that tackle these problems head-on are fast emerging. One such solution is the urban container gardening (UCG), perfected by Perfecto “Jojo” Rom, 35, as a strategy to “democratize agriculture and empower households to participate in food production and ecological sanitation [Ecosan].”
However, when Rom started UCG in 2002, he had no inkling that he had developed a program that answers a lot of questions that the government and the private sector have been trying to answer for a very long time, issues such as environmental protection, sanitation, food security and nutrition.
As he pursued the development of the UCG, however, he had slowly realized that growing food, especially highly nutritious organic vegetables in the household, is now a possibility in urban areas.
Aside from positively impacting food security, environmental protection, sanitation and economic problems of urban poor, UCG also positively impacts nutrition problems in the city.
Because most city dwellers rely so much on processed “instant food”, most residents now lack the proper nutrients needed for the body’s optimal function.
“Malnutrition in the Philippines is caused by a host of interrelated factors – health, physical, social, economic and others. Food supply and how it is distributed and consumed by the populace have consequent impact on nutritional status. While reports indicate that there is enough food to feed the country, many Filipinos continue to go hungry and become malnourished due to the inadequate intake of food and nutrients. In fact, except for protein, the typical Filipino diet was found to be grossly inadequate for energy and other nutrients. In order to compensate for the inadequate energy intake, the body utilizes protein as an energy source. Thus, the continuing PEM [protein-energy malnutrition] problem in the country,” the UN’s FAO said.
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